In the Midst of Chaos
by NotYourAverageSchoolgirl
Summary: A collection of war drabbles for those of you who believe in hope in the midst of darkness and heartbreak. Chapter 5 up DracoPansy!
1. Until the End of Time

**This is going to be my new little collection of war drabbles, which I'm going to add to as inspiration hits me. They'll be short lil things- not all of them will feature couples, but I'm guessing the first few will. The first one's Ron/Hermione. Enjoy, and tell me what you think and if I should continue. **

"I'm so tired," she murmurs, pale tear streaks standing out against her grimy skin. And he can feel his heart break.

"Shush," he whispers, and it feels strange to speak so softly, so tenderly. There isn't much room for tenderness when one is fighting in a war. "Just sleep, okay? Okay, honey? Just sleep."

He curses inwardly as she sniffles again and gingerly lays her cheek against the starchy hospital pillow and closes her eyes. With his right hand, he brushes her curls away from her face cautiously. He leans down to kiss her cheek and his eyes involuntarily well up with tears. "This wasn't supposed to happen," he mutters hoarsely to himself, but she hears anyway.

Her eyes flutter open, and meet his. "What?" she asks with effort. "What wasn't supposed to happen?"

"This war, the killing, you lying here hurt." It hurts him to say it, hurts to see her lying here in pain, and he would do anything to end this.

"I'm not dead, Ron." And even with broken ribs and suffering from exhaustion, she still manages to admonish him in the way that only Hermione can. "And this was supposed to happen. It was always supposed to happen. It's selfish to just think of ourselves."

"But I only want to think about you," he whispers, holding her hand to his cheek and kissing it lightly.

"But," she counters, closing her eyes again and sighing tiredly, "The world's in a complete mess right now… what's going to happen if we don't try to do something?"

"What's going to happen if we do?"

"We don't know, do we?" Her voice is quieter now, and her hand is limp in his. "But Harry's out there, and I think we're going to win. Because our side cares, and even when hell is right before us, we're still prepared to fight."

"You're so brave," he says admiringly. "So selfless. You don't worry about dying, do you?"

She smiles wryly. "Well that's the easy part," she murmurs, and her face becomes serious. "It's much harder pushing away your worries about those you love."

"Have you been able to do that?"

She opens her eyes and gazes steadily at him. "No," she says softly, and it is all that needs to be said.

"I'll be here."

She closes her eyes again. "I know, Ron. If need be, you'll be by my bedside until the end of time." She laughs softly.

"Until the end of time."


	2. Watching the Stars

**Harry/Ginny drabble time, yay! I think I'll be writing more of these... if you review! hint hint**

The sky is the color of inky velvet, dotted with bright stars like silver sequins. It is so beautiful that Ginny stops for a moment and stands, simply staring off into the darkness. The breeze chills her through her tattered cloak, but she simply wraps her thin arms around herself and exhales deeply.

Ahead of her, Harry stops abruptly, turning around. His forehead furrows in concern. "What's wrong?" he asks, walking back to where she stands. "Are you alright?"

"Fine," she replies, not taking her eyes off of the sky. "I'm fine."

He wraps his arms around her and she doesn't resist, simply leaning back into him. He smells of sweat and dirt, and maybe even blood, but she doesn't care, because that's how she smells too. Even with his arms around her, his fingers are still wrapped firmly around his wand.

Constant vigilance, she thinks. This is the mantra that has been ingrained into every witch and wizard fighting. Constant vigilance. Always be prepared. The enemy could be anywhere.

But here, tonight, the fighting seems so far away, and she wants nothing more than to stand here forever, staring off into the bright stars, reveling in the clean, untouched blue-black of the sky.

"Tired?" he prods her, still determined to find out what's wrong. She smiles and turns around to look at him.

He is still the same boy she's loved all these years, with the same striking green eyes and messy black hair and determination to save the world. But there are tired creases around his eyes, and his hair is dirt-caked, just as hers probably is.

Only eighteen, she thinks. Barely an adult and already carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

"I'm just thinking, Harry," she says, pouting slightly. "Goodness, can't I do even that without you butting in?"

He smirks, accustomed to her joking manner. "Gin," he says, turning her around by her shoulders to face him. "I'm always curious when it comes to you."

"How annoying," she scoffs, and a silly smile settles on her face, because light banter is such a relief in such a bleak situation.

"But it's so fun to annoy you." And for once he doesn't sound far older than his age- he sounds like a playful little boy, and she likes it.

She turns around again to stare at the sky and leans back into his waiting arms. "So you'll never get tired of me?" she asks in a light, teasing tone.

"Never," he says, and together they watch the stars.


	3. Breathe

**Thanks for the reviews guys! Here's the newest, a Tonks/Charlie drabble for MrsAliciaWeasley! If anyone else has certain character requests, tell me, and I'll consider writing one for you. **

**JamieBell- I'm so glad you liked the drabbles. They're ridiculously fun to write! And thanks for the compliments- I think angst is fun to write. Sometimes. But fluff is fantastic as well.**

**Dress-Without-Sleeves- Thanks so much! I'm glad you liked these... I want to add a couple more Harry/Ginny and Ron/Hermione ones too. **

**MrsAliciaWeasley- This one is 'specially for you. Hope you enjoy, and hope I did okay! This is my first time writing this pairing...**

**Chantal J- Thanks for the kind comments!**

**Kingmaker- Glad you liked my drabbles D. **

Tonks gazes at the sunset, a peaceful image of golden hues. Sometimes, she thinks, sometimes she wishes that she could just turn her hair black and go incognito. She wants to run from this war sometimes, and she freely admits that it is because she is afraid. Only a fool wouldn't be afraid in days like this. There is so much to fear: injury, death, defeat, heartbreak… the list goes on forever, but she wills herself to stop thinking about it.

For now, she just needs to concentrate on breathing.

She leaves Order Headquarters without the others knowing, and they would throw a fit if they knew she had gone alone. But she needs to get out, away from the sweaty men and grim faces. She needs to get away from the tears and bad news. She just needs to take a walk. Tonks sighs, and her hair, in a choppy chin-length cut, turns silver. She catches her reflection in the window of a passing car and smiles wryly.

It suits her. She has aged in so many ways since this war began.

Cold air brushes past her, and she wishes she had brought a thicker cloak. The sunset is fading now, as all beauty will, and she bites her lower lip at the quickly graying sky. She is afraid, and she feels like a coward because of it.

She hears feet pounding the pavement behind her and stiffens. Someone is running after her. From instinct, she gasps in panic and runs. She has never worked well under pressure, and momentarily forgets that she can apparate.

"Tonks!" The masculine voice calls out to her.

She stops, heart still fluttering in her chest, and leans against the nearest building. The bricks are faded and crumbling, but they support her as she breathes heavily. "Charlie," she says, and turns to look at the young man standing before her, out of breath from running.

"You gave us quite a scare," he replies angrily, eyes hard in a way that makes her lower her eyes in shame. "You know better than to just leave like that. I don't need to tell you what kind of trouble you could get in, Tonks."

"I know," she whispers, and for a moment she feels so small, like a little girl being scolded by someone she cares about so much.

"Oh, Tonks," he says, and she can hear the hardness crumbling, and this gentleness and care is so much more heartbreaking. "Oh Tonks, you gave me quite a scare." He moves towards her.

She stumbles towards him and throws her arms around his neck, pressing her cheek against his. And she tries not to think about the fact that they're going to war tomorrow and every day until this is over, and that they may die any day.

As he lowers his lips towards hers, she closes her eyes wearily.

For now, she just needs to concentrate on breathing.


	4. Go Back

**Gee, I know, updates haven't come since FOREVER. But alas, I've been busy with school and the like. pouts prettily You'll forgive, me, won't you? Anyways, here's another drabble for you. Luna- fascinating character. By the way, continue with the feedback D. I love it when I get reviews. **

Luna walks with Neville and Ginny, frowning as her shoes pound into the dirt path, getting covered with dust. Her companions have their wands held tightly in their hands, but hers is tucked behind her ear, a habit that she's never grown out of.

"Come on, Luna," the other two motion for her to follow.

They chatter sporadically along the way, sometimes reminiscing about their Hogwarts days, or talking about a recent humorous incident. They never talk about what's happening now, she realizes. The war is all around them and they are walking in their fight for the light, yet they act as if it's not happening.

Ginny and Neville are in the middle of an argument about whether or not mules can reproduce, and she doesn't have the heart to tell them that mules are the undead cousins of the hippopotamus, so she just listens.

And suddenly, they stop talking. Before them stands a derelict shack, and from within, they can hear rustling.

"Who's there?" Ginny calls out cautiously, stepping forward.

"Just me!" A high-pitched voice squeals, and a little girl emerges, her dark eyes serious as she scampers over to the three stunned Order members.

She's no older than seven, and her dress is grimy and tattered beyond recognition. Luna thinks that she can recognize a bright flowery print that she once wore, but maybe it's just wishful thinking. The girl runs a hand through her disheveled hair and stands before them uncertainly, biting her lower lip.

"What's your name?" Neville asks softly, kneeling down to her eye level. They've dealt with child survivors before- after all, this is a large part of their job in the war. They have to kill and save. How ironic, Luna muses, but she's the only one who seems to think so.

"Helen," the girl responds shyly, and hurries on to tell the rest of her story. "Mummy and Daddy were taken away- I don't know where. By men in dark robes, and then Mummy told me to hide in the closet, so I did, and they never came back… They ruined my toys too… they ruined everything."

She rushes back into the house before they can say anything, and soon she has returned, carrying a broken toy broomstick. "See?" she insists, proving to them that her story is true. "See?"

Luna kneels down beside Helen and gently takes the broomstick out of her hands. It's small- she could fit it in her old school bookbag if she wanted to. The little girl watches her and nods solemnly.

"It's gone, don't you see? I can't ever use it again."

"You can never go back," Luna murmurs, and for the first time since her mother's death, she cries.


	5. Here Together

**This is for Tru Lys, who requested a Draco/Pansy ficlet.** **I know I've been away for a long time, but I haven't felt fanficky lately. I hope you all understand. Perhaps I'll continue writing, and perhaps I won't. I'll make no promises, but I will say -- Tru Lys, your review inspired this one. It just came to me and flowed, so I hope you like it! ) Thanks to all my loyal readers. **

The morning is bleak and sad and gray and he's sitting in a stone room, heavily protected by dark magic. They say that it is for his protection, that if they let him out, he'd be torn to pieces by a grief shattered world, but he knows the truth. The Dark Lord is punishing him for his failure, and shutting him away from the sun. Most days, Draco sits in his little stone room, nauseated by the life he leads.

No one speaks to him, not even Severus. They know that it is taboo; his period of shame is not over yet. He is protected, but the loneliness and guilt weighs down on him so heavily that sometimes he thinks that he'd rather be dead. One day, there is a light tapping at the door, and he raises his head in surprise.

"Hello?" he whispers, his voice hoarse.

The door slowly opens, and a familiar head pops inside, short dark hair and bright sparkling eyes.

"Hi," Pansy whispers back, offering him a weak smile.

He wonders what she's doing here. He wonders why it suddenly hurts so much to have her here. He wonders why he feels like he would die if she turned out to be just a dream.

She steps inside, softly closing the door behind her. Her long black robe brushes against her ankles as she sits on the bench next to him. "How are you doing?" she asks conversationally, her voice hushed. Her eyes are filled with concern.

"Okay," he says, swallowing hard. He reaches out with a trembling hand to grab hold of hers. She wraps her fingers around his. "What are you doing here? You're not supposed to be here – they'll know. _He'll_ know."

He's filled with panic. They can't hurt her. They can't take her away from him. He's taken her for granted for so long, and suddenly he regrets it. She's been the only constant in his life for a long time.

"Shush," she smiles tensely. "It's okay. I… I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Everyone's out on a mission anyways…" Her face darkens. "It shouldn't be too dangerous, but they won't be back for a few hours at least."

"Your parents will be okay," he says in reassurance. She smiles a little, but he can tell that she's still sick with worry inside.

"Draco," she says tiredly, leaning against him. "Maybe it's selfish, but I think I came to see you because I felt awfully lonely without you."

He slings his arm around her shoulder and breathes in the scent of her hair. Mint and green tea. God, he's missed her.

"Pansy," he replies hoarsely. "I felt awfully lonely without you too."

She snuggles into his neck, and he squeezes her shoulder, and they sit together in silence. They don't think of the war, or of whether or not their side, the "dark" side will win. They are together, and that is all that matters for now.


End file.
